February 26, 2014

Mardi Gras: Laissez les bon temps roullez!

Let the good times roll! At least through Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday. On Wednesday, we'll all be giving up something for Lent.

At the bakery, we love some of the traditions of the season...

King Cakes hold great symbolism. The first king cakes were traditionally eaten on the Feast of the Epiphany, to celebrate the arrival of the Magi to the Christ Child. The cake’s traditional ring shape represents the round-about path that the Magi took in order to protect the newborn savior. The small plastic baby within the cake signifies the Christ Child, hidden from King Herod. The lucky party-goer who discovers the baby inside their piece of cake would be crowned as King or Magi because he or she had found Christ. The vivid colors of Mardi Gras that usually adorn the cakes also manifest great spiritual meaning. Each color represents something that Christ brought with him: purple signifies Christ’s justice, green signifies faith, and gold signifies the power of Christ as the King of Kings.

Masks allow wearers to escape societal constraints and protect the identity of revelers and krewe members throughout the carnival season, and especially on Mardi Gras. When wearing a mask, carnival goers are free to be whomever they want to be, and mingle with whatever class they desire to mingle with. On Fat Tuesday, many people wear masks, adding to the excitement and magic of celebrations throughout the city.

The fleur-de-lis, an abstract lily, is associated with New Orleans because of its French origin, but not specifically with Mardi Gras. The symbol appears on countless European coats of arms and flags, but is best known as a symbol of France. According to French historians, the three petals originally represented the three classes of people in medieval times -- those who worked, those who fought, and those who prayed. They later came to represent faith, wisdom, and chivalry. During Mardi Gras season, they can also represent justice, faith, and power, and we take creative license decorating these cookies in traditional Mardi Gras colors.

In the spirit of the season, come on down and pick up a king cake, or some cookies and laissez les bons temps roullez!